The head of the UN peacekeeping force stationed on the Israel-Lebanon border has asked Lebanon to remove a tent set up by militant group Hezbollah on disputed land between the two countries.
Israel asked Maj Gen Aroldo Lazaro to convey the message to Prime Minister Najib Mikati and Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri at a meeting in Beirut on Monday.
Under 2006 UN resolution 1701, which followed a fierce 34-day conflict between Israel and Hezbollah that killed more than 1,000 Lebanese civilians and 44 Israeli civilians, the UN peacekeeping force was reinforced near the Blue Line, which marked Israel's withdrawal from Lebanon following its occupation of the south of the country, between 1985 and 2000.
Lebanon’s army was still allowed to patrol in the area, while Hezbollah was asked to pull its fighters back from a zone patrolled by the UN peacekeepers.
About 200 Hezbollah fighters and 121 Israeli soldiers died in the 2006 war. Fears that fighting would break out again have grown in recent months because Israel accuses Hezbollah of illegally building outposts along the border.
The UN peacekeeping force, Unifil, has acknowledged it has difficulty in getting to some areas where Hezbollah has allegedly built structures.
Lebanon Foreign Minister Abdallah Bouhabib said Lebanese leaders told the UN commander that Israel should withdraw its troops from the Lebanese part of the town of Ghajar that was captured by Israeli troops in 2006.
Israel filed a complaint with the UN in June claiming that Hezbollah had set up tents several dozen metres inside of Israeli territory. It is unclear what was inside the tents or what they were for.
The area where the tents were erected in Shebaa Farms and the Kfar Chouba hills were captured by Israel from Syria during the 1967 war and are part of Syria’s Golan Heights that Israel annexed in 1981.
The Lebanese government said the area belongs to Lebanon.
Israeli media reported this month that Hezbollah evacuated one of the two tents but there has been no confirmation from the Iran-backed Lebanese group.
After the meeting between Mr Mikati and Gen Lazaro, Mr Bouhabib told reporters that the UN team has relayed the Israeli request that the tent be removed.
He added that Lebanese officials told Gen Lazaro that “we want them (Israelis) to withdraw from Ghajar that is considered Lebanese territory.”
Israel captured Ghajar from Syria in the 1967 war when it took the Golan Heights. After the Israeli military ended an 18-year occupation of southern Lebanon in 2000, UN surveyors split Ghajar between Lebanon and the Israeli-controlled Golan, but Israel reoccupied the northern half during the 34-day war with Hezbollah in 2006.
In recent weeks, Lebanese officials said that Israel has built a wall around the Lebanese part of Ghajar, warning that Israel might annex it to the Israeli part of the town.
Hezbollah last week issued a statement calling Israel’s works around the Lebanese part of Ghajar as “dangerous”, adding that the wall is separating the town “from its natural and historic surroundings in Lebanon”.
Almost at the same time that the Hezbollah statement on Ghajar was issued, an anti-tank missile was fired from Lebanon near Ghajar – with some fragments landing in Lebanon and others inside Israeli territory. Israel fired shells on the outskirts of Kfar Chouba.
Israel and Hezbollah fought to a draw in a month-long war in Lebanon in 2006.
Last month, Hezbollah said it shot down an Israel drone flying over a village in southern Lebanon.
Israel considers Hezbollah its most serious immediate threat, estimating it has some 150,000 rockets and missiles aimed at Israel.
Timeline
2012-2015
The company offers payments/bribes to win key contracts in the Middle East
May 2017
The UK SFO officially opens investigation into Petrofac’s use of agents, corruption, and potential bribery to secure contracts
September 2021
Petrofac pleads guilty to seven counts of failing to prevent bribery under the UK Bribery Act
October 2021
Court fines Petrofac £77 million for bribery. Former executive receives a two-year suspended sentence
December 2024
Petrofac enters into comprehensive restructuring to strengthen the financial position of the group
May 2025
The High Court of England and Wales approves the company’s restructuring plan
July 2025
The Court of Appeal issues a judgment challenging parts of the restructuring plan
August 2025
Petrofac issues a business update to execute the restructuring and confirms it will appeal the Court of Appeal decision
October 2025
Petrofac loses a major TenneT offshore wind contract worth €13 billion. Holding company files for administration in the UK. Petrofac delisted from the London Stock Exchange
November 2025
180 Petrofac employees laid off in the UAE
What is graphene?
Graphene is extracted from graphite and is made up of pure carbon.
It is 200 times more resistant than steel and five times lighter than aluminum.
It conducts electricity better than any other material at room temperature.
It is thought that graphene could boost the useful life of batteries by 10 per cent.
Graphene can also detect cancer cells in the early stages of the disease.
The material was first discovered when Andre Geim and Konstantin Novoselov were 'playing' with graphite at the University of Manchester in 2004.
RedCrow Intelligence Company Profile
Started: 2016
Founders: Hussein Nasser Eddin, Laila Akel, Tayeb Akel
Based: Ramallah, Palestine
Sector: Technology, Security
# of staff: 13
Investment: $745,000
Investors: Palestine’s Ibtikar Fund, Abu Dhabi’s Gothams and angel investors
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The President's Cake
Director: Hasan Hadi
Starring: Baneen Ahmad Nayyef, Waheed Thabet Khreibat, Sajad Mohamad Qasem
Rating: 4/5
21 Lessons for the 21st Century
Yuval Noah Harari, Jonathan Cape
Know before you go
- Jebel Akhdar is a two-hour drive from Muscat airport or a six-hour drive from Dubai. It’s impossible to visit by car unless you have a 4x4. Phone ahead to the hotel to arrange a transfer.
- If you’re driving, make sure your insurance covers Oman.
- By air: Budget airlines Air Arabia, Flydubai and SalamAir offer direct routes to Muscat from the UAE.
- Tourists from the Emirates (UAE nationals not included) must apply for an Omani visa online before arrival at evisa.rop.gov.om. The process typically takes several days.
- Flash floods are probable due to the terrain and a lack of drainage. Always check the weather before venturing into any canyons or other remote areas and identify a plan of escape that includes high ground, shelter and parking where your car won’t be overtaken by sudden downpours.
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WHEN TO GO:
September to November or March to May; this is when visitors are most likely to see what they’ve come for.
WHERE TO STAY:
Meghauli Serai, A Taj Safari - Chitwan National Park resort (tajhotels.com) is a one-hour drive from Bharatpur Airport with stays costing from Dh1,396 per night, including taxes and breakfast. Return airport transfers cost from Dh661.
HOW TO GET THERE:
Etihad Airways regularly flies from Abu Dhabi to Kathmandu from around Dh1,500 per person return, including taxes. Buddha Air (buddhaair.com) and Yeti Airlines (yetiairlines.com) fly from Kathmandu to Bharatpur several times a day from about Dh660 return and the flight takes just 20 minutes. Driving is possible but the roads are hilly which means it will take you five or six hours to travel 148 kilometres.
Greatest Royal Rumble results
John Cena pinned Triple H in a singles match
Cedric Alexander retained the WWE Cruiserweight title against Kalisto
Matt Hardy and Bray Wyatt win the Raw Tag Team titles against Cesaro and Sheamus
Jeff Hardy retained the United States title against Jinder Mahal
Bludgeon Brothers retain the SmackDown Tag Team titles against the Usos
Seth Rollins retains the Intercontinental title against The Miz, Finn Balor and Samoa Joe
AJ Styles remains WWE World Heavyweight champion after he and Shinsuke Nakamura are both counted out
The Undertaker beats Rusev in a casket match
Brock Lesnar retains the WWE Universal title against Roman Reigns in a steel cage match
Braun Strowman won the 50-man Royal Rumble by eliminating Big Cass last
Get Out
Director: Jordan Peele
Stars: Daniel Kaluuya, Allison Williams, Catherine Keener, Bradley Whitford
Four stars
Honeymoonish
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Dhadak 2
Director: Shazia Iqbal
Starring: Siddhant Chaturvedi, Triptii Dimri
Rating: 1/5
